Technical What type of grinder do you use?

Has anyone here used these brushless grinders? I see them at home depot now and I am wondering if they would be an advantage over traditional ones. I've bought some from princess auto and they just burn out after a short period of time. What kind of grinders do you guys recommend for cutting and stripping?

 

If you're buying anything over 6" diameter, get a good one; it'll be worth it in the long run. For the 4-5" ones, I've found that the HF cheapies seem to last about as long as the trigger switches do in the 'name brand' units, and cost less than replacement switches.....

 

I have a Metabo 4 1/2". It's the tool I use the most by far and it never lets me down like my old DeWalt did.

 

I prefer air. I have a Dotco 6" air grinder. I also prefer 50 grit discs to 36 or 24. Seems to work faster and smoother. For electric I have some very old Skil and Black n Decker units for up to 9" discs. The Skil is a cruel tool. Very heavy but hot damn does it work. Really good for the shrinking disc with 5000 RPM and lots of TQ. Hit the pawn shops and resale joints. The old stuff that never wears out sells for dirt.

 

4 1/2"Milwaukee, 6" Milwaukee !,, love them

 

I think we've tried them all at our shop & have concluded that you get what you pay for .
Right now , the majority of our grinders are DeWalt , with one Bosch that was hanging in there very well until it shelled out it's brushes just last week (new ones on the way) . We used Metabo grinders for many years , but quality seemed to have dipped & the I can't say we were impressed by the Milwaukee pair we tried - they died in very short order . We even joked around & got a Harbor Freight one - it only had enough power to be used as a cup-wire brush tool , and was as noisey as a bottle full of marbles from day one .

Grinders at our shop get used hard , every day . We don't have time (or the patience) for junk .

 

I've not had a 4-1/2 grinder last more than a year with daily use.
The expensive ones run smoother and are way easier to work with but I don't find them running longer
I had an old Bosch 9" grinder that lasted almost 8 years with heavy industrial usage EVERY DAY. But they don't make them like that anymore, I got the replacement (same model #) and it burned up in about a year or so.

 

Thanks for the advice. Everything I have purchased from princess auto dies so quickly. I guess I need to invest in a good one now.

I borrowed a Dewalt from work but it was used years for demolition work. It died while grinding down a pontiac lol. Just took a look at the metabo they look like good grinders.

I switched to air because of the cheap electric ones burning out. Settled on a Pro Point. It works great but I need to pick up a new electric now.

I have been reading up on them they have gotten some good reviews by the looks of it.

Thanks for the advice. I've been looking at the Dewalt. There are a couple on sale still so I might have to pick one up. Any model you recommend? I know what you mean about the HARBOR FREIGHT grinder. The Princess auto is the same!

 

`I used a 4 1/2" Milwaukee for 16 years. Just replaced it with a Makita.

 

As I'm sitting here on my**** here at home , I don't really have a DeWalt model/part # for ya , but I know we're using 10 amp units . We have used 7.5 amp units from DeWalt too , and they've worked out well also , taking almost everything we threw at it . For home use , it would be enough (I wouldn't go less , personally) .

 

After a few years of one handing a 7" skill I got a 4" Makita and 40 years later the darn thing is still running..Way easier to use one handed

 

I have had my 4" Makita for 15 years, never failed me yet.

 

My first Milwaukee 4.5"lasted about 12 years. This tool gets used more than any other tool in my shop. Gets worked hard and long.I had to replace it 2 years ago because even after installing new brushes it just wouldn't work right so I bought another Milwaukee and never really liked it. The switch*****ed, and just last week it went up in smoke. I was kind of shocked as I took much better care of this one compared to the first. I'm going to get a DeWalt. Also looking at a Matco air powered one for lighter work.
I wouldn't even think of a H/F grinder. I'd probably cook that in a day.


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OK, so I'm a cheap old fart. I bought this WEN Model 943 7" Sander-Polisher from a chain called Handyman back in the early 70s. Think it was under $15.00 Still works today. Noisy as a freight train but still going strong. Always kept it clean and blown out with air after each use. Only changed the brushes once. For anyone who doesn't know or remember, Handyman was a discount hardware chain (think of it as a Walmart for tools and building materials) except as you can see from the picture it was made in the USA not China. So even though it was a cheap pile of***** (by 70s standards) it has still lasted all these years.

 

I have a Craftsman 7" grinder here at home that looks a lot like that one , wojojo . You can see from the pics , that it looks to be a decent quality unit , which is unheard of from a "budget" one nowadays .

 

Nope, they don't make 'em like they used to. I've got a 4" Metabo and two 4" Milwaukees with bad switches in my 'spares' drawer, and the switches are more money than a new HF grinder. The HF only last a year or so in hobby use, but at $20 or even less on sale, I'll just pick up 2-3 at a time and throw them away when they quit. The last time I bought switches for the 'name' ones, they cost me nearly $100 from the local repair shop (three switches, and that didn't include installation). Unless you buy the $$$ heavy-duty 'industrial' versions (which you probably won't find at Home Depot), even the 'name' ones are throwaways.

And Wojojo, I had one of those 'Wen' sanders too; got it as a prize in a sales promotion and that thing lasted nearly 30 years before finally wearing out. I still have a Thorsen 1/2" all-ball-bearing drill motor (with a wrist-breaking D handle) that's fifty years old if it's a day that still works.

I tried going to air, but those just don't have the power of the electric ones....

 

My small grinders are Hilti's.

 

Sold the inventory and equipment a few years ago, but I at one time had a side business repairing boat propellers, aluminum, stainless steel, and bronze.
This involves tig welding to replace metal either worn or broken away, after straightening, then grinding back to original contour.
When I started out, I bought another guy's equipment and added to it from there. He had a Makita 4" angle grinder that I used a lot, and eventually replaced it with another one just like it, good tool, but expensive.
Decided to try the 4.5" Harbor Freight ones and found out they have 2 grades, cheapest is "Drillmaster" and not worth buying and taking home. But the "Chicago Electric" brand would, although noisy, do a decent job for a good while under some rather severe use. I always kept a spare new one on hand, and simply threw them away if replacing the brushes with the spares they furnish with the grinder didn't fix. Considering the price as compared to name brands, they were much more cost effective.

 

Makita electrical for me, had them for years now. Only thing I do is blow them out and change the brushes occasionally.

 

I have a couple of quality Bosch for 6-8" discs but I too use the HF cheapos for the smaller wheels. The nice thing is you can buy a half dozen for a hundred bucks and dedicate sanding, cutoff or grinding wheels to each and not have to swap discs around. But always keep a spare in the drawer. I have had a couple of them go bad.

 

Years ago I was using 4" Makita grinders a lot,then I switched to 4.5" De Walt because
it was hard to find 4" discs for the Makitas. I 've used Skill,B&D, Matabo, and all of the
usual suspect name grinders but keep coming back to DeWalt.

............................ Jack

 

I have a pre buy out ( milwaukee was bought out by techtronic in 2005 the same people who AEG and the quality went down hill as its china made now except for the sawzall , and the li impacts ) 3" and 4" milwaukee electric grinder , and a 9" Hf ( CE #69085) I use as a chop saw . only have replaced the brushes on the hf unit , the old milwaukees are still chugging along , I should check the brushes on them soon .

 

I had a Princess Auto 4.5"....for about 2 days. I got one from Cdn. Tire that lasted a couple yrs and actually was pretty decent. Right now I've got a noisy Hitachi that's lasted a few months and a DeWalt that's pushing 2 yrs old. I try to use the bench grinders ( Baldur and a belt drive Blanchard) for the heavy work, and I also have a Blue Point air powered 6". There's also 3 cheap die grinders that are great for cleaning up welds in tight corners( one with a cut off wheel, one with a Snap On rotary file and one with a wire brush). I've taken the gears out of a couple cheap angle grinders, and I've ran into threads where guys take them apart to grease them. Has anyone tried adding a grease zerk to the head of one?

 

I've got an old Black and Decker made back in the late 60s-early70s back when they made good tools. I bought it new. Its a heavy metal one, not the plastic***** you get stuck with now. The only thing I have had to fix on it is the locking pin to keep the spindle locked when you change discs. It has been one of the best investments in tools I have ever made, along with an old Craftsman 1/2 inch drill I bought about the same time. I don't know if you can even buy quality electric tools anymore, but like Crazy Steve said, buy a good one if you get a big one, it will last you almost a lifetime.
I bought one of the little 4inch jobs from HF for a single job I had that needed a small grinder. It works ok so far, but I have only had it about a year. I am sure it will self destruct, but for 15 bucks on sale, I figured it would be ok for a couple of small jobs.

 

2 4.5 inch Milwaukee grinders One with a 24 grit disc and one with a cutoff wheel, although the switch on the newer one*****s. 2 8 inch Makita's for grinding boxing plates, one with a disc and one with a wheel. I was shucking out the big Milwaukee's and went to these Mikita's which seem to be holding up well.

 

my Milwaukee finally gave up after 18 years, looks like it needs only brushes, but I haven't got around to fixing it. I had a dewalt just give up as well... not as old as the Milwaukee, seems like it may be the switch....I don't like that one anyway because it does not have a deadman switch.

I replaced them with 2 Porter Cable grinders which seem like a good product for the price, but I will fix the Milwaukee eventually.

 

I just went through searching everything online, and getting them in my hands at lowes, home depot, and sears.

Originally I was going to go with porter cable as it felt best in my hands, but I saw several reviews of them going up in smoke rather quickly.

Came down to the 4.5" milwaukee and dewalts - both 7 amps and cost about 60 bucks.

I think milwaukee has a 5 year warranty and had zero play in the gear and excellent reviews. I ended up going with the dewalt though because the switch and handle just felt better.

Its a bit noisy but I think I'll hang onto it. My other dewalt tools have never given me trouble (just home use not a pro)

 

I tried two harbor freight grinders both broke within 10 minutes. I've been using a black and decker for over 6 years and it hasn't broken yet.

 

I use the Milwaukee 4 1/2" for cleaning up welds and bodywork and a DeWalt 7" variable speed for cutting and polishing paint. Almost any electric grinder will work better if you replace the brushes before they wear out and blow them out with air to get the grit out.

 

Been good to me, three year warranty if memory serves me.